Never Noticed
by Funkiechick
Summary: Though Hermione loves Ron, and Fred loves Angelina, the two have a talk, a considering of the possibilites between them, and finally a closure on what could have been. R/H, F/A, F/H (only a little)


Never Noticed  
By Funkiechick  
  
(This was an idea that just popped into my head this morning while I was eating breakfast. It's R/H, and a little H/G. But there's not real interaction between Ron and Hermione. It actually focuses around Fred and Hermione. They have a talk, and Fred wonders some things. Enjoy.)  
  
Fred Weasley cursed slightly as he tore some grass up from the back lawn and threw it as far as grass could possibly be thrown. He was not the type of seventeen year old to get angry easily, but right now he was as angry as he could possibly be. Here he had graduated from Hogwarts with fantastic marks, and him and George even had a job in mind. But naturally his mother disapproved, and had scolded them. Like they were the same person.  
  
He hated it when people refereed to them as the same. George was his brother, his best friend. But they weren't the same person. And sometimes nearly everybody had trouble seeing that.  
  
A sound of footsteps behind him caused him to turn his head rapidly over his shoulder, to see Hermione. She and Harry had come to visit that summer-once again. Harry's permission from Dumbledore had made nearly the whole family rejoice.   
  
"Hi." She said quietly.  
  
"Hey...uh." He shrugged. "It's pretty late, why are you out here?"  
  
Hermione walked towards him, and sat down next to him. She was in her pj's-a pig t-shirt of Ron's and some shorts. Fred assumed she either couldn't sleep or was angry at Ron. Probably both.  
  
"I couldn't sleep." Hermione sighed. "Ron and I had a fight. I come out here all the time when we fight at your place. I didn't know you came out here."   
  
Fred grinned. "Yeah well, it being my house and all." Hermione laughed slightly, but she was clearly sad. "What'd that idiot brother of mine do this time?"  
  
"Oh he just..." She sighed, and grabbed some grass from the lawn, and tossed it-much like he had earlier. "He was mad because I told him to stop bothering Harry about Ginny." She eyed Fred. "You know about them, right?"  
  
"Yeah." Fred nodded. "We've tried to simmer Ron down about it. But I guess it must be pretty weird when your best friend is interested in your little sister."  
  
"I told him that." I nodded. "But then I guess I was scolding too much and he got mad." Hermione sighed. "He's really impossible, sometimes."  
  
Fred nodded. Ron and Hermione had been an item since the end of Fifth Year, and their fighting hadn't been too bad. But lately the stress of Voldemort's return was getting to everyone again. Summer did that to you. You had time to think about that sort of thing.  
  
"So." Hermione said. "How come you're out here? Is it because you fought with your mum? I heard you upstairs."  
  
"Yeah." Fred sighed, running his hands through his hair. "She called me George and I really lost it. Mum can usually tell us apart, but when she's mad it's like she doesn't care." Fred shrugged. "And I hate that, because I'm not George, and why am I even telling you this?!"  
  
Hermione looked slightly hurt, but understanding. Fred and her were friends, but not really close ones. He had never talked about his problems with her before. Or anyone really.   
  
But neither did she, and tonight she had.  
  
"Sorry." Fred said sheepishly, in a way that reminded Hermione of Ron.   
  
"It's alright. I shouldn't have asked. You don't have to tell me."  
  
"No, that's just it." Fred sighed. 'I need to tell somebody.' He thought. "Everyone often refers to me and George in the same person. It's never 'Hey Fred! How's life?' or 'George, nice shirt!'. It's always both of us. Even if the other one isn't there." He sighed. "George is my best friend, and half the reason we get along so well is we're really different. Yeah, we both have the same sense of humor, and mind with jokes. But..." Fred paused, as if looking for an example. He turned to Hermione. "George likes Arithmancy."  
  
"....oh." Hermione nodded somewhat.  
  
"I don't. I don't really like many subjects in our school. I like writing. And painting." Fred grinned. "George doesn't. The only subject we share interest in is Defense Against The Dark Arts." Fred shrugged. "And we both love Quidditch. But we like reading different things and doing different things when we're not around each other."  
  
"I know that. I remember when George asked me if he could...if he could borrow that Arithmancy book of mine, and you started teasing him." Hermione smiled slightly.   
  
Fred looked over at her. "We have different hair cuts. Please tell me you notice. No one else does."  
  
"Not even Angelina?" Hermione asked. Fred had a grin on his face then.  
  
"Well, Angelina doesn't count." Fred lay down on the grass. "She's my girlfriend."  
  
"See?" Hermione said. "Even though not everyone notices, the people that count do. Your family notices. But when they're angry, they talk before they think." Hermione smiled openly at him now. "And yes, I've always noticed your different hair cuts. I've also noticed you prefer wearing red and green. George likes blue."  
  
Fred sat up again, and smiled at her. "You're a great kid, you know that?"  
  
Hermione blushed. "Thankyou."  
  
Fred also noticed that she was beautiful. He'd always thought Hermione was attractive. And very pretty too. But he had never noticed how beautiful she really was. Not in a Parvati way, or a Lavender way. But in a...Hermione way. A way that no one could deny, but no one could really describe.  
He also noticed, as he looked down at her legs, she had a nice tan...  
  
He looked back up at her. "You're a beautiful girl, Herm."  
  
She turned bright red then, and stared speechlessly at him. "W-what?"  
  
"You're beautiful."  
  
Hermione looked away from Fred and down at her hands. No one had ever called her beautiful before, except for Ron. And she had always had a feeling that Ron said so, just because he was her boyfriend. But this meant...that both of them meant it.  
  
"Really?" She asked, looking back up at him.   
  
"Really. And you're really amazing too." He grinned. 'I never noticed how amazing she was.'  
  
Both of them were silent for a moment, and then Hermione stood up. "I think Ron is probably ready to apologize now. Thankyou for listening Fred."  
  
"ThankYOU." He said. "G'night, Herm."  
  
She kept standing there, and Fred stared back at her with a puzzled expression on his face. She knelt down again, and they stared at each other for a while, and then Fred leaned forward slightly and planted a kiss on her lips. She didn't pull back, or shout. She kissed him back slightly, and when he pulled away, she was blushing.  
  
"Good night." She said, standing up. "I just think that...that I wanted to do that and I never will again but..."  
  
"I know." He said. She smiled, nodded, and went back inside the Burrow.  
  
Fred knew that he would never tell anyone what happened between Hermione and him that night. And it was really nothing to worry about. But for some reason, both of them needed it. Fred needed to feel like he was different from George. And Hermione needed to feel as if she was appealing to people other than Ron.  
  
Fred learned that Hermione had kissed him knowing full well he was Fred, and knowing full well who she was kissing. And he had kissed her thinking her attractive, and amazing. And now that the kiss was out of the way, they would always be just friends, because that's all they thought about each other. Friends.  
  
He had never noticed what a good friend she was.  
  
end 


End file.
